By STEPHEN GROVES and MARY CLARE JALONICK, Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate was voting Wednesday on legislation aimed at putting a check on President Donald Trump’s ability to use deadly military force against drug cartels. Democrats and at least one Republican sought to counter the administration’s extraordinary assertion of presidential war power to destroy vessels in the Caribbean.
This marked the first vote in Congress on Trump’s military campaign, which has so far destroyed four vessels in the Caribbean, killed at least 21 people, and stopped narcotics from reaching the U.S., according to the White House.
The proposed War Powers Resolution would require the president to seek authorization from Congress before conducting further military strikes on the drug cartels.
The Trump administration has asserted that drug traffickers are armed combatants posing a threat to the United States, creating a legal justification to use military force. However, this assertion has raised unease on Capitol Hill.
Some Republicans are asking the White House for more clarification on its legal justification and specifics on how the strikes are conducted. Meanwhile, Democrats insist these actions violate U.S. and international law.
This clash could redefine how the world’s most powerful military uses lethal force and set the tone for future global conflicts.
The White House has already indicated that Trump would veto the legislation, and the Senate vote Wednesday was not expected to succeed. However, it provided lawmakers with an opportunity to officially register their objections to Trump’s declaration that the U.S. is in armed conflict with drug cartels.
“It sends a message when a significant number of legislators say, ‘Hey, this is a bad idea,’” said Sen. Tim Kaine, a Virginia Democrat who pushed the resolution alongside Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff of California.
### What is the War Powers Resolution?
Wednesday’s vote was brought under the War Powers Resolution of 1973, intended to reassert congressional power over declarations of war. The legislation would bar the Trump administration from using military strikes against vessels in the Caribbean Sea unless Congress specifically authorizes it.
Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, who has long advocated for greater congressional power over war decisions, was the lone Republican to support the legislation ahead of the vote, though Schiff and Kaine indicated other Republicans had expressed interest.
A number of GOP senators have questioned the vessel strikes and said they are not receiving enough information from the administration.
“Congress must not allow the executive branch to become judge, jury, and executioner,” Paul said in a floor speech.
Sen. Kevin Cramer, a North Dakota Republican, acknowledged there may be some concern within the Republican conference about the strikes. However, Sen. Mike Rounds, a South Dakota Republican and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he did not expect many Republicans to vote for the resolution.
“I’m going to vote no when the president is exercising his constitutional responsibility,” Rounds said.
### What has the administration told Congress about the strikes?
Members of the Senate Armed Services Committee received a classified briefing last week on the strikes. Cramer said he was comfortable at least with the plausibility of the administration’s legal argument but noted that no representatives from intelligence agencies or the military command structure for Central and South America were present during the briefing.
“I’d be more comfortable defending the administration if they shared the information,” he said.
Kaine also noted that the briefing did not include details on why the military chose to destroy the vessels rather than interdict them, nor specifics on how the military was so confident that the vessels were carrying drugs.
Democrats also said the administration told them it is adding drug cartels to a list of organizations deemed narco-terrorists and eligible targets for military strikes but has not shown lawmakers the full list.
“Maybe they were engaged in human trafficking, or maybe it was the wrong ship,” Schiff said. “We just have little or no information about who was onboard these ships or what intelligence was used, what the rationale was, and how certain we could be that everyone on that ship deserved to die.”
### A visit from Rubio
Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited the Republican Conference for lunch Wednesday to emphasize to senators that they should vote against the legislation.
He told senators that the administration was treating cartels like governmental entities because they have seized control of large portions of some Caribbean nations, according to Sen. John Hoeven of North Dakota.
“These drug trafficking organizations are a direct threat to the safety and security of the United States to unleash violence and criminality on our streets, fueled by the drugs and the drug profits that they make,” Rubio told reporters at the Capitol. “And the president is the commander in chief, has an obligation to keep our country safe.”
Still, Democrats said the recent buildup of U.S. maritime forces in the Caribbean marks a shift in U.S. priorities and tactics that could have grave repercussions. They expressed concern that further military strikes could trigger a conflict with Venezuela and argued that Congress should be actively involved whenever American troops are sent to war.
“This is the kind of thing that leads a country, unexpectedly and unintentionally, into war,” Schiff said.
Associated Press writer Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2025/10/08/senate-war-powers/